'Plot Would Have Killed Thousands'

ProfJohn

Lifer
Jul 28, 2006
18,161
7
0
Interesting details of the airline bombing plot from last year.
Also a video of one of these bombs being set off.

Thank god there is no war on terror or else we might have to be worried about stuff like this. :roll:
link
Terrorists who had planned to detonate gel-based explosives on U.S.-bound flights from London last August would have achieved mass devastation, according to new information from Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff in an exclusive interview with ABC News.

"I think that the plot, in terms of its intent, was looking at devastation on a scale that would have rivaled 9/11," Chertoff told ABC's Pierre Thomas. "If they had succeeded in bringing liquid explosives on seven or eight aircraft, there could have been thousands of lives lost and an enormous economic impact with devastating consequences for international air travel."

Sources tell ABC News that after studying the plot, government officials have concluded that without the tip to British authorities, the suspects could have likely smuggled the bomb components onboard using sports drinks.

The components of that explosives mixture can be bought at any drugstore or supermarket; however, there is some question whether the potential terrorists would have had the skill to properly mix and detonate their explosive cocktails in-flight.

But they can work ? scientists at Sandia National Laboratory conducted a test using the formula, and when a small amount of liquid in a container was hit with a tiny burst of electrical current, a large explosion followed. (Click on the video player on the right side of this page to view the video.)

The test results were reviewed today by ABC terrorism consultant Richard Clarke, who said that while frequent travelers are upset by the current limits on liquids in carry-on baggage, "when they see this film, they ought to know it's worth going through those problems."

One official who briefed ABC News said explosives and security experts who examined the plot were "stunned at the extent that the suspects had gamed the system to exploit its weaknesses."

"There's no question that they had given a lot of thought to how they might smuggle containers with liquid explosives onto airplanes," Chertoff said. "Without getting into things that are still classified, they obviously paid attention to the ways in which they thought they might be able to disguise these explosives as very innocent types of everyday articles."

Tense Hours as Officials Learned of Plot

Chertoff speaks candidly about those moments when Homeland Security learned about the potential attack, and the terrorists had not yet been captured.

"This was very, very tightly held, because the British were concerned about any possibility of a leak getting out. Obviously, the intelligence folks knew, the senior intelligence folks, the president, senior leaders in the White House," he said. "Within my own department, only the deputy and I were initially told about this."

"I got a call telling me that it looked as if the focus had turned on an attack on the United States, specifically an attack on airliners leaving from Britain, traveling to American cities," Chertoff said. "It also became evident, within 24 hours, that the time frame within which the attack was going to take place, would not be a matter of months but ? a matter of weeks or even days."

Airports in the United States and the United Kingdom were put on red alert ? meaning a potential attack could be imminent ? and liquids were banned from carry-on luggage as suspects were picked up, including 24 British-born Muslims and seven Pakistanis.

"We had to start about 9, 10 o'clock in the evening, when the arrests began to go down in Pakistan, and when we were first given the ability to tell other people about the plot," Chertoff said. "And we had to turn the entire process around by 6 a.m. the following morning, before people started to board airplanes.

"You had to change literally thousands of people's behavior in the course of about 12 hours. We had to train them. We had to get everybody to understand what the new rules were going to be. And you had to communicate to the public in a very short period of time.

"And so, we spent literally the entire night bringing in not only the TSA senior leadership, but also talking on the phone to the airline leadership, so that everybody would understand what needed to happen at 6 a.m. the following day," he said.

For Chertoff, the concern remained that an attack would have been carried out if they'd missed a critical detail. "There's an enormous sense of working against time, giving the analysts as much time as you possibly can, but always recognizing at the end that the benefit of the doubt has to be in favor of saving lives."

Assessing Current Risks

Since last August, the failed plot has had an enormous impact on U.S. airports, which have remained on orange ? or high ? alert, for nearly a year.

After authorities tested the explosive liquids, the government determined what quantity of liquid explosives could pose a risk if smuggled onboard flights, leading to the 3-ounce limit for carry-on bags.

Passengers are still restricted when bringing liquids onboard, and those rules may remain in place forever.

At the moment, Chertoff believes there is a "heightened risk" of an attack.

"We have seen that in some areas of Pakistan, the enemy has been able to reconstitute itself and get a breathing space, so to speak, where they can plan and do some recruiting and some training. We've seen increased effort to develop terrorist operatives in Europe.

"And, of course, the concern we have, because of the visa waiver program, has been Europeans either carrying out attacks against Americans on the European continent, or even coming to the United States," Chertoff said.

"When you add these things together, they don't move into a mathematical certainty we're going to have an attack, but they do suggest that there is a heightened threat, a bit more capability than there was, and, therefore, all the more reason for us to continue to raise the level of our security and our defenses," he said.

That progress was aided after the arrests last year that provided Homeland Security with information about terrorist capabilities.

"Clearly, the effort to put explosives in sports bottles was a reaction to what we had done with respect to other kinds of explosives, and ? we're going to be back and forth with terrorists on this kind of cat-and-mouse process for years to come," Chertoff said.

And while he is confronted by pieces of data daily as Homeland Security tries to assess credible threats and piece together information, Chertoff said he remains continually struck by the nature of the enemy.

"You know, we go about our business during the summer, other times of the year. People are going to ballgames or watching their children graduate from high school," he said, "and it chills me sometimes to think there are people a half a world away who are spending the same period of time in a cave, trying to figure out how to kill us."
 

ayabe

Diamond Member
Aug 10, 2005
7,449
0
0
Originally posted by: ProfJohn
Thank god there is no war on terror or else we might have to be worried about stuff like this. :roll:
[/quote]

I fly at least once a month and I'm not worried.

Good thing they issued you a case of incontinent briefs after your orientation at RNC HQ.

 

Moonbeam

Elite Member
Nov 24, 1999
73,811
6,518
126
For years now, in all of this type of thread, I have told you that the time is coming when a bright teenager will be able, in the privacy of his own garage, create a nano bot or biological that will destroy all life on earth. You will never be safe as long as humanity is mentally ill and the last thing you will ever do is cure mental illness. You are the one who is sick, you and you and me. And the only mental illness you can ever cure is your own.

As long as humanity will not face this fact humanity is on a path to extinction. We would rather die than know how we feel.
 

JEDIYoda

Lifer
Jul 13, 2005
33,986
3,320
126
Originally posted by: ProfJohn
Interesting details of the airline bombing plot from last year.
Also a video of one of these bombs being set off.

Thank god there is no war on terror or else we might have to be worried about stuff like this. :roll:
link
Terrorists who had planned to detonate gel-based explosives on U.S.-bound flights from London last August would have achieved mass devastation, according to new information from Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff in an exclusive interview with ABC News.

"I think that the plot, in terms of its intent, was looking at devastation on a scale that would have rivaled 9/11," Chertoff told ABC's Pierre Thomas. "If they had succeeded in bringing liquid explosives on seven or eight aircraft, there could have been thousands of lives lost and an enormous economic impact with devastating consequences for international air travel."

Sources tell ABC News that after studying the plot, government officials have concluded that without the tip to British authorities, the suspects could have likely smuggled the bomb components onboard using sports drinks.

The components of that explosives mixture can be bought at any drugstore or supermarket; however, there is some question whether the potential terrorists would have had the skill to properly mix and detonate their explosive cocktails in-flight.

But they can work ? scientists at Sandia National Laboratory conducted a test using the formula, and when a small amount of liquid in a container was hit with a tiny burst of electrical current, a large explosion followed. (Click on the video player on the right side of this page to view the video.)

The test results were reviewed today by ABC terrorism consultant Richard Clarke, who said that while frequent travelers are upset by the current limits on liquids in carry-on baggage, "when they see this film, they ought to know it's worth going through those problems."

One official who briefed ABC News said explosives and security experts who examined the plot were "stunned at the extent that the suspects had gamed the system to exploit its weaknesses."

"There's no question that they had given a lot of thought to how they might smuggle containers with liquid explosives onto airplanes," Chertoff said. "Without getting into things that are still classified, they obviously paid attention to the ways in which they thought they might be able to disguise these explosives as very innocent types of everyday articles."

Tense Hours as Officials Learned of Plot

Chertoff speaks candidly about those moments when Homeland Security learned about the potential attack, and the terrorists had not yet been captured.

"This was very, very tightly held, because the British were concerned about any possibility of a leak getting out. Obviously, the intelligence folks knew, the senior intelligence folks, the president, senior leaders in the White House," he said. "Within my own department, only the deputy and I were initially told about this."

"I got a call telling me that it looked as if the focus had turned on an attack on the United States, specifically an attack on airliners leaving from Britain, traveling to American cities," Chertoff said. "It also became evident, within 24 hours, that the time frame within which the attack was going to take place, would not be a matter of months but ? a matter of weeks or even days."

Airports in the United States and the United Kingdom were put on red alert ? meaning a potential attack could be imminent ? and liquids were banned from carry-on luggage as suspects were picked up, including 24 British-born Muslims and seven Pakistanis.

"We had to start about 9, 10 o'clock in the evening, when the arrests began to go down in Pakistan, and when we were first given the ability to tell other people about the plot," Chertoff said. "And we had to turn the entire process around by 6 a.m. the following morning, before people started to board airplanes.

"You had to change literally thousands of people's behavior in the course of about 12 hours. We had to train them. We had to get everybody to understand what the new rules were going to be. And you had to communicate to the public in a very short period of time.

"And so, we spent literally the entire night bringing in not only the TSA senior leadership, but also talking on the phone to the airline leadership, so that everybody would understand what needed to happen at 6 a.m. the following day," he said.

For Chertoff, the concern remained that an attack would have been carried out if they'd missed a critical detail. "There's an enormous sense of working against time, giving the analysts as much time as you possibly can, but always recognizing at the end that the benefit of the doubt has to be in favor of saving lives."

Assessing Current Risks

Since last August, the failed plot has had an enormous impact on U.S. airports, which have remained on orange ? or high ? alert, for nearly a year.

After authorities tested the explosive liquids, the government determined what quantity of liquid explosives could pose a risk if smuggled onboard flights, leading to the 3-ounce limit for carry-on bags.

Passengers are still restricted when bringing liquids onboard, and those rules may remain in place forever.

At the moment, Chertoff believes there is a "heightened risk" of an attack.

"We have seen that in some areas of Pakistan, the enemy has been able to reconstitute itself and get a breathing space, so to speak, where they can plan and do some recruiting and some training. We've seen increased effort to develop terrorist operatives in Europe.

"And, of course, the concern we have, because of the visa waiver program, has been Europeans either carrying out attacks against Americans on the European continent, or even coming to the United States," Chertoff said.

"When you add these things together, they don't move into a mathematical certainty we're going to have an attack, but they do suggest that there is a heightened threat, a bit more capability than there was, and, therefore, all the more reason for us to continue to raise the level of our security and our defenses," he said.

That progress was aided after the arrests last year that provided Homeland Security with information about terrorist capabilities.

"Clearly, the effort to put explosives in sports bottles was a reaction to what we had done with respect to other kinds of explosives, and ? we're going to be back and forth with terrorists on this kind of cat-and-mouse process for years to come," Chertoff said.

And while he is confronted by pieces of data daily as Homeland Security tries to assess credible threats and piece together information, Chertoff said he remains continually struck by the nature of the enemy.

"You know, we go about our business during the summer, other times of the year. People are going to ballgames or watching their children graduate from high school," he said, "and it chills me sometimes to think there are people a half a world away who are spending the same period of time in a cave, trying to figure out how to kill us."

Exactly my friend!!
Once again you snaggd an article that is so appropriate!!
Good Job!!! :)
 

FLegman

Member
Jul 26, 2007
98
0
0
Greetings ProfJohn,

Interesting details indeed & i will like to add this Link as to provide the readers with extra info about the almost daily Terror related subjects.

Regards,
 

Fern

Elite Member
Sep 30, 2003
26,907
173
106
I'd like to know how our intelligence agencies became aware of this. Unfortunately that ain't gonna happen.

Fern
 

ProfJohn

Lifer
Jul 28, 2006
18,161
7
0
Originally posted by: ayabe
Originally posted by: ProfJohn
Thank god there is no war on terror or else we might have to be worried about stuff like this. :roll:
I fly at least once a month and I'm not worried.

Good thing they issued you a case of incontinent briefs after your orientation at RNC HQ.
Sooner or later these terrorists will succeed in pulling off some kind of attack against us.
Hopefully it will be similar to the failed attack against the Glasgow airport.

But as they say, we have to be right 100% of the time; they have to be right only once.

BTW I am not scared at all; I don?t go about my daily life worrying about some attack. The second we stop taking these threats seriously is when we will find ourselves being attacked.
 

1EZduzit

Lifer
Feb 4, 2002
11,833
1
0
Didn't these terrorists get the memo that they're supposed to go to Iraq so we don't have to fight them "over here"?
 

StageLeft

No Lifer
Sep 29, 2000
70,150
5
0
Oh no the big bad terrorists were going to kill thousands. Ergo, irrefutable logical conclusion since it didn't happen, the current approach to the war on terror is beyond reproach and we should all bow down to the supremacy of the Commander in Chief's superior strategizing. Thank God a man of such calibre can withstand the dissenting crescendo of the idiots who don't see him for the intellectual gem he is.

BTW, I won't read another blurb by one of any million government officials who are fear mongering. I don't buy into it. You want to fear for your life? Look in the mirror. Pick up a pamphlet on heart disease or automobile accidents or cardiac arrest or cancer or diabetes, etc.
 

Harvey

Administrator<br>Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
35,057
67
91
Originally posted by: ProfJohn
But as they say, we have to be right 100% of the time; they have to be right only once.

That's once more than the Bushwhackos have been right about anything. I'd give it more credence if it came from anyone outside the administration. There's always the off chance that they say something that happens to be true, but if so, it's only a coincidence, or it's only because the selected, filtered and isolated fact happens to promote their agenda.
 

FLegman

Member
Jul 26, 2007
98
0
0
Originally posted by: 1EZduzit
Didn't these terrorists get the memo that they're supposed to go to Iraq so we don't have to fight them "over here"?

Haha, wishfull thinking i will say. Btw do Terrorist have time to read, specially Memos from US intelligence.

 

1EZduzit

Lifer
Feb 4, 2002
11,833
1
0
Originally posted by: FLegman
Originally posted by: 1EZduzit
Didn't these terrorists get the memo that they're supposed to go to Iraq so we don't have to fight them "over here"?

Haha, wishfull thinking i will say. Btw do Terrorist have time to read, specially Memos from US intelligence.


Wishful thinking? You mean like "last throes" and "mission accomplished" and the rest of the catch phrases? At least your honest.


Yes, terrorists have time to read, "specially" US intelligence memos. What else can they do all day long hiding in their caves?
 

umbrella39

Lifer
Jun 11, 2004
13,816
1,126
126
Originally posted by: ayabe
Originally posted by: ProfJohn
Thank god there is no war on terror or else we might have to be worried about stuff like this. :roll:

Good thing they issued you a case of incontinent briefs after your orientation at RNC HQ.

[/quote]

sig worthy. :thumbsup:

Pst to the dolt RNC hacks here, our romp in Iraq has ZERO to do with preventing attacks on our soil. If this kind of thing was such a big deal to our administration and your repug heroes, homeland security and first responders would not be so underfunded like it is. Wake up and while you are at it, grow up.
 

jonks

Lifer
Feb 7, 2005
13,918
20
81
Man, the democrats better change that talking point they have about "we're for terrorists taking flights with the rest of you." That could be embarassing.

(Fantasy?)
When interviewed, the terrorists yelled, "we did it because you are in Iraq! Get out of our country!" The President had no comment.
(/Fantasy?)
 

ProfJohn

Lifer
Jul 28, 2006
18,161
7
0
South Carolina Police Charge 2 Students With Having Several Pipe Bombs Near Navy Base
Two men found with several pipe bombs in their car near a Navy base were charged Monday with possession of an explosive device, authorities said.

A joint state-federal investigation was under way to see whether there was any terrorism connection but no link had been found yet, said FBI spokeswoman Denise Taiste. The Navy base is the site of a brig where enemy combatants have been held.

Ahmed Abda Sherf Mohamed, 24, and Yousef Samir Megahed, 21, both students at the University of South Florida in Tampa, were driving through the area on Saturday to vacation at a North Carolina beach for Mohamed's birthday, their defense attorney said.

"They admitted to having what they said were fireworks. Based on the officer's judgment at hand, based on what he had seen, we judged it to be other than fireworks," Berkeley County Sheriff Wayne DeWitt said.

Mohamed, 24, said he made pipe bombs from items he bought at Wal-Mart, according to an affidavit with his arrest warrant.

Defense attorney, Dennis Rhoad, said the men have a reason for having the devices and it would become clear in later court hearings.

"The defendants deny the allegations the state and the sheriff have made against them," Rhoad said.

Prosecutor Scarlett Wilson asked for high bond, which was set at $500,000 for Mohamed and $300,000 for Megahed, because she said the men were dangerous and a risk to flee.

Mohamed is a native of Kuwait and Megahed is Egyptian, the sheriff said. Both are in the country legally.

Ahmed Bedier, the executive director of a civil rights organization for Muslims in Tampa, criticized the arrest as racial profiling, an accusation South Carolina police refuted.

It's not clear if the item found in the vehicle is actually a bomb, said Bedier, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

"If it's clearly a pipe bomb that's a different story. Then there is cause for concern," Bedier said. "However, we have not seen consistent evidence that it is a pipe bomb. There is a lot of contradiction out there."

Megahed lives with his family and they voluntarily allowed the FBI to search their home in Tampa Monday, Bedier said.

"They're so confident that they don't have anything in their home that they gave the keys to some agents. The father voluntarily allowed them to go search the home unsupervised," Bedier said.

Mohamed and Megahed were stopped for speeding Saturday night on U.S. Highway 176 near Goose Creek, which is the site of the Naval Weapons Station and houses the U.S. Naval Consolidated Brig, a military prison where enemy combatants have been held.

They were heading west, away from Goose Creek, when they were pulled over about seven miles from the sprawling Navy facility, police said.

Officers became suspicious because the men quickly put away a laptop computer and couldn't immediately say what they were doing in the area or where they were going, DeWitt said.

A deputy then found what he thought were explosives in the 2000 Toyota Camry and called the bomb squad. Technicians confirmed the devices were pipe bombs and destroyed them, according to sworn statements in the arrest warrants.

Authorities closed a mile-long stretch of the highway Saturday night and didn't reopen it until about 4 a.m. Sunday.

University spokesman Ken Gullette said Mohamed is a civil engineering graduate student who came to the school in January. He earned his undergraduate degree in Cairo and was in the country on a student visa.

Megahed, who has permanent resident status in the United States, is an undergraduate and has been at the university since 2004, but has not declared a major, Gullette said.

Neither has ever been arrested by campus police or disciplined by the university, Gullette said. Both were enrolled in classes this summer. Gullette said the university is cooperating with authorities.

If convicted of the felony charge, the men would face from two to 15 years in prison.

Goose Creek, with a population of about 30,000, is about 20 miles north of Charleston.
 

FLegman

Member
Jul 26, 2007
98
0
0
Originally posted by: 1EZduzit
Wishful thinking? You mean like "last throes" and "mission accomplished" and the rest of the catch phrases? At least your honest.

Yes, terrorists have time to read, "specially" US intelligence memos. What else can they do all day long hiding in their caves?

Yep exactly, "Mission Accomplished" is my Favorite :)

And yes about the Terrorist best hobby being US Intelligence Memo reading, i totaly forgot that they need to release the "pressure" of their dark duty by getting a distraction, the Memos help in that perspective...
 

Harvey

Administrator<br>Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
35,057
67
91
Originally posted by: sirjonk
Man, the democrats better change that talking point they have about "we're for terrorists taking flights with the rest of you." That could be embarassing.

(Fantasy?)
When interviewed, the terrorists yelled, "we did it because you are in Iraq! Get out of our country!" The President had no comment.
(/Fantasy?)

I searched Google for "we're for terrorists taking flights with the rest of you." It wasn't there so, unless you can document who said that and where, it would appear that the only "fantasy" is your bullsh8 finger pointing.
 

dahunan

Lifer
Jan 10, 2002
18,191
3
0
Good thing we are over in Iraq killing innocent muslims EVERY DAY directly and by proxy.. that will stop terrorism.. really it will
 

JD50

Lifer
Sep 4, 2005
11,836
2,635
136
Originally posted by: Harvey
Originally posted by: sirjonk
Man, the democrats better change that talking point they have about "we're for terrorists taking flights with the rest of you." That could be embarassing.

(Fantasy?)
When interviewed, the terrorists yelled, "we did it because you are in Iraq! Get out of our country!" The President had no comment.
(/Fantasy?)

I searched Google for "we're for terrorists taking flights with the rest of you." It wasn't there so, unless you can document who said that and where, it would appear that the only "fantasy" is your bullsh8 finger pointing.


I searched google for Bush saying "saddam is responsible for 9-11". It wasn't there, but that doesn't stop you from your insane rants, constant personal attacks, and absolute bullshit you spread throughout this forum every single day. When it comes to bullshit finger pointing, you are the one driving that bus.
 

dahunan

Lifer
Jan 10, 2002
18,191
3
0
Originally posted by: JD50
Originally posted by: Harvey
Originally posted by: sirjonk
Man, the democrats better change that talking point they have about "we're for terrorists taking flights with the rest of you." That could be embarassing.

(Fantasy?)
When interviewed, the terrorists yelled, "we did it because you are in Iraq! Get out of our country!" The President had no comment.
(/Fantasy?)

I searched Google for "we're for terrorists taking flights with the rest of you." It wasn't there so, unless you can document who said that and where, it would appear that the only "fantasy" is your bullsh8 finger pointing.


I searched google for Bush saying "saddam is responsible for 9-11". It wasn't there, but that doesn't stop you from your insane rants, constant personal attacks, and absolute bullshit you spread throughout this forum every single day. When it comes to bullshit finger pointing, you are the one driving that bus.

It was Cheney that said that

and Bush inferred it a million times in his early speeches bringing this war to fruition
 

ayabe

Diamond Member
Aug 10, 2005
7,449
0
0
Originally posted by: ProfJohn
Originally posted by: ayabe
Originally posted by: ProfJohn
Thank god there is no war on terror or else we might have to be worried about stuff like this. :roll:
I fly at least once a month and I'm not worried.

Good thing they issued you a case of incontinent briefs after your orientation at RNC HQ.
Sooner or later these terrorists will succeed in pulling off some kind of attack against us.
Hopefully it will be similar to the failed attack against the Glasgow airport.

But as they say, we have to be right 100% of the time; they have to be right only once.

BTW I am not scared at all; I don?t go about my daily life worrying about some attack. The second we stop taking these threats seriously is when we will find ourselves being attacked.

The only reason they even release this information is to keep the sheep from complaining about our governments wanton disregard for privacy laws, due process, etc and to inflate the fear level.

This of course leads to TSA pulling 85 year old ladies aside and asking them if they know OBL because they have two blocks of cheese in their carry-on.

It's a joke, if someone wanted to blow up a plane, they could and there's very little we could do to stop them. We can be attacked at any time anywhere, tonight I could get a blood clot in my brain and die. Strangely I don't ever think about either scenario for the same reasons that I don't fantasize about winning the lottery.
 

JD50

Lifer
Sep 4, 2005
11,836
2,635
136
Originally posted by: ayabe
Originally posted by: ProfJohn
Originally posted by: ayabe
Originally posted by: ProfJohn
Thank god there is no war on terror or else we might have to be worried about stuff like this. :roll:
I fly at least once a month and I'm not worried.

Good thing they issued you a case of incontinent briefs after your orientation at RNC HQ.
Sooner or later these terrorists will succeed in pulling off some kind of attack against us.
Hopefully it will be similar to the failed attack against the Glasgow airport.

But as they say, we have to be right 100% of the time; they have to be right only once.

BTW I am not scared at all; I don?t go about my daily life worrying about some attack. The second we stop taking these threats seriously is when we will find ourselves being attacked.

The only reason they even release this information is to keep the sheep from complaining about our governments wanton disregard for privacy laws, due process, etc and to inflate the fear level.

This of course leads to TSA pulling 85 year old ladies aside and asking them if they know OBL because they have two blocks of cheese in their carry-on.

It's a joke, if someone wanted to blow up a plane, they could and there's very little we could do to stop them. We can be attacked at any time anywhere, tonight I could get a blood clot in my brain and die. Strangely I don't ever think about either scenario for the same reasons that I don't fantasize about winning the lottery.

A criminal could murder you anytime, should we just get rid of the police? Someone could run a red light and T-bone you, should we just get rid of traffic lights? You could die of a heart attack before you could even get to the hospital, should we get rid of hospitals?

They can't win with you guys can they? You blame them for 9-11 because you (not you specifically) think that they didn't release enough info beforehand. Now they are upfront with stuff thats going on and you accuse them of fearmongering, blah blah blah...
 

jonks

Lifer
Feb 7, 2005
13,918
20
81
Originally posted by: Harvey
Originally posted by: sirjonk
Man, the democrats better change that talking point they have about "we're for terrorists taking flights with the rest of you." That could be embarassing.

(Fantasy?)
When interviewed, the terrorists yelled, "we did it because you are in Iraq! Get out of our country!" The President had no comment.
(/Fantasy?)

I searched Google for "we're for terrorists taking flights with the rest of you." It wasn't there so, unless you can document who said that and where, it would appear that the only "fantasy" is your bullsh8 finger pointing.

You're kidding right? You googled "we're for terrorists taking flights with the rest of you" to see if some democrat actually said it??? I thought I was being sarcastic enough...guess not.

And my 'fantasy' scenario was just to point out that it's not inconceivable that Iraq was motivation for terror attacks outside the country. I thought we were on the same idealogical side of things.
 

jpeyton

Moderator in SFF, Notebooks, Pre-Built/Barebones
Moderator
Aug 23, 2003
25,375
142
116
The components of that explosives mixture can be bought at any drugstore or supermarket; however, there is some question whether the potential terrorists would have had the skill to properly mix and detonate their explosive cocktails in-flight.
This "plot would have killed thousands" assessment makes a lot of assumptions to reach its headline-worthy but far-fetched conclusion.

This isn't any different from other administration "terror alerts" designed to rally an extremely wary populace behind their tired and trumped up cause.
 

LegendKiller

Lifer
Mar 5, 2001
18,256
68
86
OMG...Trrsts not involved in Iraq *might* have been able to combine sophisticated chemicals to the proper ratios using gatorade bottles to maybe blow a hole in an airplane that might crash it with hundreds of people on board. They might have been able to do this to several planes at the same time. Considering that *millions* of people fly per day only a basis point would have been affected.

Thus, we *have* to stop a *certain* terrorist attack by *definitely* searching *every* bag for even the slightest hint of liquids. Threaten arrest of *definite* terrorists who might have said liquids. Additionally we *have* to wiretap anybody without oversight, because anybody could be a terrorist.

How fricking pathetic. Then they compare Sandia *LABRATORIES* who could use a completely controlled, perfectly measured, highly experienced chemists, to 3rd world terrorists in a 1x1 bathroom.

I guess we should just sign over our lives now, because any "what if" scenario must be plausable and provable in a completely controlled environment.